David Friedrich Strauß, Father of Unbelief: An Intellectual Biography

by Frederick C. Beiser

Overview

David Friedrich Strauss is a central figure in 19th century intellectual history. The first major source for the loss of faith in Christianity in Germany, his work Das Leben Jesu was the most scandalous publication in Germany during his time. His book was a critique of the claims to historical truth of the New Testament, which had been the mainstay of Protestantism since the Reformation. As the father of unbelief, his critique of Christianity preceded that of Nietzsche, Marx, Feuerbach, and Schopenhauer. His views imposed a harsh fate upon him - he was persecuted for his beliefs by religious and political authorities and was denied employment in the university and government, forcing him to live as a free-lance writer. He led a wandering and isolated life as an outcast. Here, Frederick C. Beiser studies the intellectual development of Strauss and recounts his fate, which began in faith as a young man but finally ended in unbelief.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780192603678
Publisher:	OUP Oxford
Publication date:	08/27/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
File size:	948 KB

About the Author

Frederick C. Beiser was born and raised in the USA. He studied in the UK at Oriel College and Wolfson College, Oxford, and then in Germany for many years, receiving stipends from the Fritz Thyssen Stiftung and the Humboldt Stiftung during that time. He has taught in many universities in the USA including Yale, Harvard, Penn, Wisconson, Colorado, and Indiana. Beiser is currently professor of philosophy at Syracuse University, New York.

Table of Contents

Introduction
1. Historical Significance of Das Leben Jesu
2. Reputation and Reality
3. Context and Background
4. Tuebingen Lectures
5. Strauss's Method and its Problems
6. The Theory of Myth
7. Reaction, Demotion, and Exile
8. The Rogue's Gallery
9. Crisis and Compromise
10. The Zurich Affair
11. The Doctrine of the Christian Faith
12. Career in Politics and Political Writings
13. Das Leben Jesu f r Das Deutsche Volk
14. Two Polemics of the 1860s
15. The New and the Old Faith
16. Three Critics